New surge of toll-o-philia grips and debilitates ORBP backers.

This comment on Facebook sums it up.

Here's my prediction... Indiana will complete the east end bridge before Kentucky even thinks about the new downtown bridge and interstate re-working. At that point Kentucky will realize the east end bridge fixed the downtown bridge situation and, the downtown bridge will never be built!

For me, it is simple. I can no longer trust any public official or Bridges Authority member, ever again. That's why I fully expect them to cynically reverse field and toll the bandaged Sherman Minton Bridge, because after all, they've continually altered what was said to be inalterable. Up until the first coin hits the slot, I will continue to oppose the tolling of any bridge, and the construction of a downtown bridge.

The next Bridges Authority meeting is January 5, 2012, 10 a.m., at the Kentucky International Convention Center (221 S. 4th St., Louisville, KY). Anyone know where bulk cream pies might be purchased?

States reach deal on bridges, from wire service reports at OSIN

... Indiana would be responsible for constructing a new bridge across the river at Utica and Prospect, Ky., a new highway linking the Lee Hamilton Expressway and Gene Snyder Freeway, and a tunnel in eastern Jefferson County.

Kentucky would be responsible for building a new Interstate 65 bridge, refurbishing the Kennedy Bridge, modernizing the Kennedy Interchange and expanding the I-65 approach in Indiana.

Tolls would help to cover the cost of construction.

8664: Who killed the study?

A press release from 8664 today revealed a Kentucky Transportation Cabinet secret:

(click on photo for larger version)



8864's letter to Kentucky Governor Beshear offered to help pay the $3,654.31 needed to complete the study and release the results.

If I were running for governor in Indiana, I'd be on the phone right now getting to the bottom of yet another voluntarily induced yet inexplicable quagmire. If I wanted to win the southern counties, I'd make a point of letting voters here know that I cared enough about them and the eastern bridge to not let a few East End financial concerns dictate transportation policy to the state of Indiana.

Current Governor and candidate Mitch Daniels has referenced that dastardly influence but has yet to act. Will he or Jill Long Thompson be the one to finally inject Hoosier interests and fiscal responsibility into the situation?

The C-J is reporting that the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet will now complete the study but quotes an official as saying it will focus on two new bridges rather than one while examining the concept of a ground-level parkway where the downtown portion of I-64 now stands.

You can almost hear it now: The state will claim that 86'ing 64 won't work based on some gerrymandered inability of a misrepresented parkway to function in the shadow of a 23 lane Spaghetti Junction. That junction, of course, would be greatly simplified by the actual 8664 plan, as would the current bottleneck at the intersection of I-64 and I-265.

8664 is the only plan that would rework that Indiana merge point. The Bridges Project, which aims to inject much more traffic onto I-265 as well, doesn't address it at twice the cost.